| Monday, July 22, 2024 |
| Veterinary medicine college again saves rare sea turtle | |
 | One Kemp's ridley sea turtle, among the world's most endangered sea turtle species, has had its third successful visit for specialized care at Mississippi State University's College of Veterinary Medicine. Better known by university veterinarians as Toast Malone, this turtle recently arrived with a fishhook lodged in its stomach. MSU Professor and CVM Internist Dr. John Thomason performed an endoscopy to successfully remove the fishhook, saving its life. The veterinary college has seen this specific sea turtle before -- performing similar procedures and microchipping the sea turtle to track and monitor its recovery. The efforts are part of the university-based Global Center for Aquatic Health and Food Security, or GCAHFS, and its Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Health Program -- a collaboration between the MSU CVM and the Institute for Marine Mammal Studies in Gulfport. Thomason said turtles have great geographic navigational skills, and they are likely to return to familiar areas, despite hazards they may encounter. He's cognizant of the responsibility and the university's role in protecting and increasing the health of such marine life through state-of-the-art procedures, study and research. "We are giving these animals the opportunity to recover and thrive," he said. |
| MSU art students highlight crops with ag building mural | |
| Two fine arts students left a lasting mark at Mississippi State after taking on an extra project in their final year of study. Senior Chloe V. Ruggiero of Covington, Louisiana, and spring 2024 graduate Abbey R. Temple of Ridgeland recently completed a mural project for the university's Department of Agricultural Science and Plant Protection. Located on the first floor of the Hill Agriculture Science Building, the 32-foot-long mural depicts select Mississippi crops -- such as corn and rice -- and the diseases that plague them. The pair was given a reference book of crops and met with faculty and others in the department to discuss what the mural should depict. "We took their pictures and examples and turned them into something of our own stylistically," Temple said. "We sort of picked the prettiest ones," Ruggiero added. "If you can believe it, plant sickness isn't always beautiful." Faculty wanted the crops and diseases to be recognizable, so Ruggiero said they put extra effort into making that happen. MSU Department of Art Professor Soon Ee Ngoh, who has championed the work of numerous student murals on campus, guided the entire process. "She was such a crusader for us during the whole process, and I truly could not have picked a better professor to lead and help us through that," Ruggiero said. |
| Work continues at MSU-Meridian's Riley campus | |
 | Photo: Workers on the third floor of Mississippi State University-Meridian's Rosenbaum Building in downtown Meridian recently put the finishing touches on windows in preparation for the fall opening of the campus' Interprofessional Simulation Program. The program will serve as the bedrock for educating future healthcare providers and will provide hands-on instruction using the latest testing and control rooms to train MSU-Meridian's 60-plus physician assistant students. The interprofessional simulation space under construction will feature a 7,715-square-foot interdisciplinary laboratory, which includes six clinical exam rooms, six medical surgical rooms, computer learning stations, a proctor area for a facilitator observation and five pre-briefing and debriefing rooms with recording and reviewing capabilities. Full accreditation of the MSU-Meridian program is anticipated in spring 2026. |
| GTRA flight delayed, schools impacted by computer outage | |
| While a faulty software update by cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike affected customers running Microsoft Windows globally on Friday morning, the effects of the glitch varied in the Golden Triangle. On Friday, CrowdStrike released a statement on its website, saying the glitch was not the result of hacking or a cyberattack, and that the issue had been identified and a fix had been deployed. The firm updated its statement later in the morning. Golden Triangle Regional Airport Executive Director Matt Dowell said that, while the airport itself did not experience any negative effects from the glitch, some of the airlines it works with did. "The impact to GTR was flight delays," Dowell told The Dispatch Friday morning. "Our morning flight was delayed by two hours. And what kind of happens with any airline is, once you have a delay on one flight, then that trickles on to your next flight and so on and so forth. So, so far, we had the delay of the morning flight and there's an upcoming delay on the afternoon flight." OCH Regional Medical Center's system was also not directly impacted by the outage, though the hospital experienced some related effects. In a written statement sent to The Dispatch, OCH Regional Medical Center Chief Information Officer Charles Greene said some of the hospital's third-party vendors were impacted. |
| Mississippi prepares for next four years of economic growth | |
 | Four days ago, Mississippi revealed another investment: $80 million by Ashley Furniture, the world's largest maker of home furnishings, to expand operations at its manufacturing facilities in Lee County, creating at least 500 new jobs. It's another feather in the cap for the Magnolia State. Looking ahead, business partners are optimistic. Roger Wehner, Amazon Web Services (AWS) director of economic development, said AWS is proud of the company's planned $10 billion investment in the state to build two data center complexes and create at least 1,000 new jobs. "This investment didn't come to Mississippi by chance," said Wehner. "It was the result of deliberate policy, economic development, and educational choices made by state leaders. Projects like these will position Mississippi as a center of innovation and investment, and it's a credit to the wide range of leaders in the Magnolia State and partners like Entergy that are delivering these economic opportunities for the region." In the second part of the series examining economic growth in Mississippi, we continue our conversation with Bill Cork, executive director of the Mississippi Development Authority (MDA), as he looks down the road. |
| McCullough named adviser to Hinds County Economic Development Authority | |
 | Former Tupelo Mayor and Mississippi Development Authority executive director Glenn McCullough has been appointed economic development adviser with the Hinds County Economic Development Authority. The HCEDA in a press release said, "This strategic collaboration underscores HCEDA's commitment to driving economic growth and fostering robust partnerships within the state." McCullough was led the Mississippi Development Authority from 2015 to 2020, and spearheaded numerous initiatives that led to record private capital investment and substantial job growth across the state. He played a key role in securing significant investments, including projects by Continental Tire, Relativity Space, and two Amazon fulfillment centers. The state during his tenure was the recipient of two silver and two gold shovels from Area Development Magazine. McCullough was elected mayor of Tupelo in 1997, but in 1999 was appointed to the board of TVA. In 2001 he was named chairman of TVA, where he played a critical role in launching the megasite program that attracted major manufacturers to the region. His involvement with the Appalachian Regional Commission as executive director from 1993-1997 "further highlights his expertise in fostering economic development and infrastructure improvement across multiple states," the press release said. |
| TVA delays resource plan to 2025 as critics push for renewables | |
 | The public has never been more engaged in the minutiae of the Tennessee Valley Authority's energy planning as it works on a delayed plan to meet growing electricity demand while achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Brian Child, TVA's vice president for enterprise planning, said the federal utility's customers have become more familiar with virtual meeting platforms like Zoom since the last integrated resource plan in 2019. This time around, as the plan was pushed from 2024 to 2025 in response to drastic new carbon-cutting rules from the Environmental Protection Agency, TVA is getting more feedback and questions from the public in virtual and in-person meetings. "We've definitely seen great participation from the public in those meetings, both just in terms of the numbers of people who are there, but also just in terms of the volume of questions that we're getting and the breadth of questions that we're getting, which is great," Child told Knox News. "That's what we're after." But the comments TVA is after are mostly unflattering as it rapidly builds natural gas plants to the dismay of environmental groups and some elected officials. To replace coal and account for a growing population, TVA is in the middle of building eight gas plants, more than any other U.S. utility this decade. Several speakers at the listening session suggested TVA was delaying the plan until after the presidential election in November to see whether the EPA's regulations stay in place. TVA said the election had nothing to do with the delay. |
| Teresa Hubbard -- Trailblazing CEO: Worldwide manufacturer is headquartered in Holly Springs and Batesville | |
| As President and CEO of Cite Armored -- a major truck manufacturing company based in Holly Springs, with an additional location in her hometown of Batesville -- Teresa Hubbard has become one of the leading entrepreneurs in the state. Quietly and without fanfare, Hubbard made a total pivot from her accounting background to running a worldwide business, which just celebrated its twentieth year, from her lifelong home state of Mississippi. Along the way, Hubbard has also consistently contributed and given back to her beloved state, including serving a current term as a Trustee with the Mississippi Institute of Higher Learning. "Teresa Hubbard is a self made American success story," said Chip Morgan, Hubbard's former fellow IHL board member. Morgan is also the past CEO of Delta Council, located in Stoneville, Mississippi. "She took the initiative and used her skills and her strengths to move a company from fledgling business risk to a major player in the business sector of a business that is extremely competitive. As a Trustee, Teresa has exhibited the same work ethic on behalf of our eight public universities that she has successfully led in the private sector. My personal view is that all State agencies are served best by those who have been a success in their private life -- and certainly, Teresa is the model for that formula." |
| A Stock-Market Rotation of Historic Proportions Is Taking Shape | |
 | The stock market has suddenly turned upside down. The market's laggards have sprung to life in recent days, while the seemingly impervious "Magnificent Seven" group of technology stocks has stumbled. Investors are even more focused than usual on corporate earnings as they try to anticipate what comes next. The Russell 2000 index of smaller stocks beat the S&P 500 over the seven days through Wednesday by the largest margin during a period of that length in data going back to 1986, according to Dow Jones Market Data. The Russell 1000 Value index, meanwhile, notched its biggest lead over its growth-stock counterpart since April 2001, after the dot-com bubble burst. Few investors saw the shift coming, and many are puzzled by what is behind it: Changing forecasts for Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts? Expectations that Donald Trump will return to the White House? A technology trade that grew precariously crowded? President Biden's announcement Sunday that he wouldn't seek re-election augmented the uncertainty and promised to refocus market attention on the presidential campaign. Now, investors are scrambling to determine whether the reordering of winners and losers is a mere blip in an era of tech ascendancy -- or if a sustainable shift is in fact under way. "That's what everybody is trying to answer," said Raheel Siddiqui, senior investment strategist at Neuberger Berman. |
| How will Mississippi choose Democratic nominee after Joe Biden backs out of 2024 presidential race? | |
 | After 81-year-old President Joe Biden officially backed away from his presidential campaign Sunday afternoon, Mississippi Democratic leadership told the Clarion Ledger that the party's executive committee now plans to hold an emergency meeting sometime this week. The meeting could decide on a candidate and even possibly create a way for the state's Democratic voters to weigh in before the August convention. As the presumptive Democratic nominee, who was to be finalized during next month's Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Biden has endorsed his Vice President Kamala Harris to take his place. However, there are others who could seek the nomination now. State Party Chair Cheikh Taylor told the Clarion Ledger that the party had just met earlier this week to confirm Biden as their choice amid the previously thought-to-be speculation that Biden was bowing out. Now, they'll meet again to do that all over again. A Mississippi Secretary of State's spokesperson told the Clarion Ledger Friday that if Biden conceded the race now, there would not be enough time left before the national convention for the Mississippi Democratic Party to have qualifiers and a primary. "We would have to refer (that) to the rule/bylaws of the Democratic National Party on the process for selecting a new candidate," Communications Director Elizabeth Jonson said in a text. "A new primary would not be held in Mississippi as state law sets a specific time for presidential preference primaries to be held." Taylor also confirmed the party is not entertaining the idea of a traditional primary. |
| Why Biden finally quit: The Saturday night decision that ended Biden's reelection campaign. | |
 | For 23 days, President Joe Biden insisted on pushing forward with his reelection bid in the face of calls from Democratic lawmakers and donors for him to step aside. And then, almost on a dime, things changed. Early Saturday, Biden told senior aides it was "full steam ahead" for the campaign. But by later that evening, he had changed his mind following a long discussion with his two closest aides. Steve Ricchetti, who's been with Biden since his days in the Senate, drove to see the president at his house on the Delaware shore on Friday. Mike Donilon arrived on Saturday. The two men, both of whom had been by Biden's side during key decisions about whether to seek the presidency in 2016 and 2020, sat at a distance from the president, still testing positive for Covid, and presented damning new information in a meeting that would hasten the end of Biden's political career. When the campaign commissioned new battleground polling over the last week, it was the first time they had done surveys in some key states in more than two months, according to two people familiar with the surveys. And the numbers were grim, showing Biden not just trailing in all six critical swing states but collapsing in places like Virginia and New Mexico where Democrats had not planned on needing to spend massive resources to win. With that knowledge and the awareness that more party elders, including more of his former Senate colleagues, would pile on the public pressure campaign, a sudden exit offered the president his best chance to make it appear that the decision came on his own terms. It was a face-saving move of high importance to Jill Biden, who, according to people familiar with recent conversations, was adamant that her husband's dignity be preserved. |
| Both Sides Abruptly Shift Campaign Strategies After Biden's Withdrawal | |
| Voters have been saying for months that they don't like their choices for president this year. Now, the campaign for the White House turns in large part on whether they reward the Democratic Party for giving them a new option. The race will be shaped significantly by whether Democrats select Vice President Kamala Harris, the likeliest but not inevitable choice, or a different nominee to replace President Biden on the ticket. Republicans have been preparing for a possible Harris candidacy and on Sunday posted an ad attacking her immediately after Biden withdrew from the race. If another candidate surfaces, the election presents the GOP, and the voters, with far more uncertainty. The main super PAC supporting former President Donald Trump, MAGA Inc., said it would spend $11 million in the next two weeks on the anti-Harris ad, which attempts to transfer Biden's low approval ratings on inflation and immigration onto Harris. The ad, which began appearing Sunday evening on broadcast TV in the swing states of Pennsylvania, Arizona and Georgia, also says Harris helped mask Biden's "obvious mental decline." That ad is the latest sign Republicans plan to accuse Harris and other Democrats of being complicit in a coverup of Biden's health challenges and flaws. Trump allies have also claimed that Democrats were subverting the will of their voters by ousting a candidate who had already swept through this year's primaries. But Trump and his allies would have to recalibrate if another nominee surfaced. |
| Biden withdrawal could prompt legal fights over ballots | |
 | President Joe Biden's withdrawal Sunday from the presidential race could result in legal challenges up to the election in November, election law experts said. Among those potential legal actions are challenges to who appears on the Democratic ticket on ballots in some states -- although election experts seemed to agree Democrats would be able to have their nominee listed -- and the fate of nearly $100 million in Biden campaign cash. Derek Muller, a law professor at Notre Dame University who specializes in election law, wrote on social media Sunday that there is a "high degree of uncertainty right now. And the longer the process of choosing a new nominee takes, the more legal uncertainty we'll see in this election." Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., on Sunday elaborated on why he thinks Republicans are likely to bring legal challenges against any attempts to replace Biden on a Democratic ticket -- and Democrats would run into "some legal impediments" in a few states. "Every state has its own system and in some of these, it's not possible to simply just switch out a candidate who has been chosen through the democratic, small D, democratic process over such a long period of time," Johnson said on "This Week with George Stephanopoulos" on ABC News, before Biden announced he was bowing out. But he alluded to the unclear path ahead. "So, we'll how it plays out. We don't know," Johnson said. |
| House Republicans say Biden must resign after ending reelection campaign | |
 | House Republicans are calling on President Biden to resign from office after he announced that he would no longer seek reelection, arguing that he should not continue to serve in the White House if he is unable to run for another term. The comments -- several of which were from House GOP leadership -- came shortly after Biden said he was withdrawing from the 2024 presidential race, a seismic announcement that rocked the political world and left the path forward for Democrats uncertain. "If Joe Biden is not fit to run for President, he is not fit to serve as President. He must resign the office immediately," Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) wrote on the social platform X. "November 5 cannot arrive soon enough." "If the Democrat party has deemed Joe Biden unfit to run for re-election, he's certainly unfit to control our nuclear codes. Biden must step down from office immediately," House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (Minn.), the No. 3 Republican in the chamber, wrote on X. Rep. Elise Stefanik (N.Y.), the chair of the House GOP conference, echoed that sentiment, arguing that he is "unable and unfit" to complete his term. "If Joe Biden can't run for re-election, he is unable and unfit to serve as President of the United States," Stefanik said in a statement. "He must immediately resign." |
| Is it ethical? Mississippi politicians seek guidance on side hustles, hiring relatives, staying out of jail | |
| In case you were wondering, a county coroner in Mississippi should not contract with their child to transport bodies. But a county can purchase gravel from the father of a supervisor, provided the supervisor doesn't vote on the purchase. Mississippi public officials struggling with issues such as giving their no-good son-in-law a government job or having a side hustle with a company that contracts with their agency can, anonymously to the public, request an ethics opinion. They don't have to heed the advice, but following it can give them some legal cover if issues arise. In years past, Mississippi officials have asked the appointed Ethics Commission for its opinion on myriad issues, including whether a city fireman can sell shoes to the police department (the opinion was no) or whether it was ethical for a school board member shacking up with a teacher to vote on renewing the teacher's contract (also no, at least on the contract. Ethics didn't opine on them shacking up). Here's a glance at some of the ethical dilemmas gnawing at public officials over the last couple of years and the advice the Ethics Commission gave them. |
| Neshoba County Sheriff's Office officially launches new app | |
 | The Neshoba County Fair is just days away, and the Sheriff's Department launched their new app a week before it. It allows users to see jail information, the inmate roster, to submit a tip and even stay up to date with what's going on in Neshoba County. One thing that sheriff Eric Clark of Neshoba is excited about is that the app will allow them to send push notifications. "Anything that goes on that affects them between the city of Philadelphia and the Neshoba County Fairgrounds, we'll be able to push that out," said Clark. "May even push out a notification for them to lock their car doors, because that has been really on our minds because we've had six burglaries. We charged two people with six different car burglars in the last week or so. We may use this application even during the fair to push out important information like just reminder to lock your car doors. You know just we can use this for anything." This is great timing, especially with the fair coming up. "We started this in June of last year. We worked on it and didn't get budget authority last year so we had to generate the money ourselves. We were able to generate that through some donations and we have just recently got approval for everything. We've went through the Sheriff's app and communicated with them, told them what we wanted. We're still in the developmental stages, but they knew how important it was to have this for the Neshoba County Fair. This being a great launch for us because of the interactivity we could have down at the fairground." |
| Nominations for National Guard leaders languish, triggering concerns as top officers retire | |
 | The top four officers of the National Guard Bureau have left or are set to retire in about two weeks, and to date no nominations for their replacements have been confirmed by the Senate, leaving the bureau, the Air Guard and the Army Guard without permanent leadership as they head into a busy hurricane season and a potentially challenging election period. Gen. Daniel Hokanson, chief of the Guard Bureau, will retire at the beginning of August and Lt. Gen. Marc Sasseville, who was the vice chief, has already retired. Lt. Gen. Jon Jensen, who is chief of the Army Guard but has been serving as acting vice chief, will also retire in early August. The lack of progress on the nominations has become a source of concern to the bureau, which oversees the training and oversight of the Guard and Reserve forces who deploy on federal duty for overseas combat and to protect the homeland. The Guard chief is a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and serves as a key link to the adjutant generals who command the state Guard units across the country and its territories. As the retirements loom, the National Guard Association of the United States sent a letter to the leaders of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Retired Maj. Gen. Francis M. McGinn, president of the association, said Friday that they are "shocked and disappointed in the process" and the fact that the White House hasn't gotten nominations to the Senate. "Delays in the confirmation process can lead to gaps in leadership, disrupting operational continuity and potentially compromising our military's ability to respond swiftly and effectively to emerging threats," wrote McGinn in the letter to the committee's chairman, Sen. Jack Reed, D-Rhode Island, and the ranking Republican, Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi. |
| Secret Service director under fire at hearing, says 'we failed' | |
 | Embattled Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle faced heated questioning Monday at the House Oversight Committee's hearing on the agency's missteps in the assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Numerous GOP lawmakers and at least one Democratic congressman have called for Cheatle's resignation. Cheatle signaled Monday she has no intentions of resigning, saying she is "the best person to lead the Secret Service at this time." Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Kentucky, opened the hearing by lauding the efforts of individual Secret Service agents that day. But he said he was concerned the agency lacks the "proper management" and said Cheatle should resign. Cheatle, in prepared remarks, said "we failed" and took "full responsibility" for security lapses. "I will move heaven and earth to ensure that an incident like July 13 does not happen again," Cheatle said. Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass., questioned the delay of more than a minute in removing Trump from the stage after he was shot in the ear on July 13. The shooter had several magazines of bullets and got off eight shots before he was killed by the Secret Service, Lynch said. "There was considerable delay in removing the president from podium after the shooting began," Lynch said. "He had the capacity and the ability if he was not neutralized to basically mow down that whole Secret Service detachment, as well as the president." |
| Trump holds first rally after assassination attempt with his new running mate, Vance, by his side | |
| Donald Trump held his first campaign rally since he survived an assassination attempt Saturday, returning to the battleground state of Michigan alongside his newly named running mate. "It was exactly one week ago, even to the hour, even to the minute," Trump told the crowd, reflecting on the July 13 shooting in Pennsylvania that left him with a bloodied ear, killed one of his supporters and left two others injured. "I stand before you only by the grace of almighty God," he said, the white gauze on his ear now replaced by a skin-colored bandage. "I shouldn't be here right now," he went on. Trump was joined by Ohio Sen. JD Vance at the pair's first event together since they became the GOP's nominees at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. "I find it hard to believe that a week ago, an assassin tried to take Donald Trump's life, and now we have got a hell of a crowd in Michigan to welcome him back on the campaign trail," Vance said before Trump's arrival. Trump also again tried to distance himself from the Heritage Foundation's Project 2025, a policy and personnel plan for a second Trump term that was crafted by a host of former administration officials. Trump blasted the project, which has become a centerpiece of Biden's campaign, as "severe right" and "seriously extreme," just like the "radical left." "I don't know anything about it," he insisted. |
| Judge exempts 7 Mississippi universities from revised Title IX rule | |
| A federal judge has temporarily excused seven universities and community colleges in Mississippi from complying with the Biden Administration's revised Title IX rule that expanded protections for LGBTQ+ and pregnant and parenting students. The state of Mississippi has been exempt from the new rule, which is set to take effect Aug. 1, since it worked with several Republican states earlier this year to successfully obtain a temporary injunction. But now, seven colleges and universities in Mississippi, including the University of Mississippi and Mississippi College, will be subject to an additional injunction following a Kansas judge's ruling on what one expert called a "clever legal gambit," because it applied to any campus that has one of three conservative education groups. In that case, Kansas sued to block the new rule along with three conservative education groups, including Young America's Foundation and Moms for Liberty. The judge's temporary injunction was broadened beyond Kansas to any school, college or university campus where those organizations have a chapter -- all told, more than 670 institutions across the country, according to Inside Higher Ed. The seven universities and colleges in Mississippi with chapters of those three groups are Holmes Community College, Pearl River Community College, Millsaps College, Mississippi College, Mississippi State University, University of Mississippi and University of Southern Mississippi, according to court filings. Sid Salter, the vice president for strategic communications at MSU, wrote in an email that the university is waiting for guidance from federal and state officials and the courts before implementing any Title IX changes. |
| MUW launches first undergraduate journal of feminist philosophy | |
| "Medusa: An Undergraduate Journal of Feminist Philosophy," housed at Mississippi University for Women, has published its inaugural issue. The online journal is the nation's first undergraduate journal dedicated to feminist philosophy. Created by Jill Drouillard, assistant professor of Philosophy and Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies, Medusa is a peer-reviewed journal that provides undergraduate students with an experience of academic publishing. "I'm very excited to provide a platform for undergraduate students writing within the field of feminist philosophy. Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies, of which feminist philosophy is a part, is a burgeoning field as witnessed by the increase of scholarly work being published in this domain," said Drouillard. Medusa is an interdisciplinary journal seeking feminist scholarship across a variety of disciplines and approaches. It welcomes submissions from all philosophical traditions and encourages papers that bridge feminist thought with other critical, cultural, gender, literary, queer, race, disability, social and political theories. Mariah Hopkins, interdisciplinary studies major with a focus in English and women's, gender and sexuality studies, served as assistant editor as part of her Nancy Yates Fellowship, a program that provides high-impact summer opportunities for W students. "Working on Medusa has been a one-of-a-kind experience, and I'm thrilled for all of the brilliant work that's been put into the journal to be shared with other scholars," Hopkins said. |
| Possumtown Book Festival coming to city next month | |
| A new festival celebrating readers, writers and the stories they share is on its way to Columbus. Emily Liner, owner of Friendly City Books, said the first Possumtown Book Festival is set for Aug. 24 at the Rosenzweig Arts Center. She said the festival will be an all-day event, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and will include a book bazaar, more than a dozen visiting authors, panel discussions, and more. "This is just about celebrating the love of reading and giving people the chance to share their stories," Liner told The Dispatch Thursday. "Mississippi is a state of writers. We know that no matter where you go in Mississippi, you can find someone that has written a great book." Liner said she came up with the idea to host a book festival in the city, instead of planning a series of smaller events throughout the summer. Liner said the new Columbus-based festival is a partner with the state-wide Mississippi Book Festival, which is being held at the Capitol in Jackson on Sept. 14. By hosting a smaller festival in the Golden Triangle, Liner said she hopes to give those who cannot make it to the larger festival the chance to meet authors in person, and to give others a "small preview" of the larger festival just a few weeks later. |
| 'GO TO HELL OLE MISS': Author Jeff Barry's debut novel explores universal themes in a uniquely Southern way | |
| With a name that's sure to turn the heads of Ole Miss football fans and their rivals, Jeff Barry's debut novel, "Go to Hell Ole Miss," is a dialogue-driven narrative that explores universal themes in a uniquely Southern way. "It's about a father's willingness to do almost anything to protect his only daughter from the man he had pressured her to marry," Barry said. "Almost." The story gives a voice to the tension between "hope and hardship, redemption and revenge, faith and doubt." Barry, 58, is a Memphis native who now lives in Chattanooga and has familial ties to north Mississippi. He stopped by Barnes & Noble in Tupelo to sign copies of the book last Saturday. "Go to Hell Ole Miss" published on May 7 and made it into the Top 20 on USA TODAY's Best-selling Booklist that month. Despite the title, the book has nothing to do with the University of Mississippi or its football team. Instead, it's derived from a war story his father, Warren Hood Barry, told. |
| The Misfit Wisdom of Harry, Barry and Larry | |
 | In and around Oxford, Miss., about three decades ago, it wasn't uncommon to drive along a rural route and pass a car with a bumper sticker that said, "I'd rather be reading Airships." The people in those cars tended to have their windows rolled down, and they looked awfully happy. These were the kind of free and literate souls, with their muddy boots and eyeglasses, that a bar-stool sociologist might call liberal rednecks. Someone slapped a copy of that bumper sticker on William Faulkner's grave in Oxford. No one thought it vandalism. Do you remember "Airships"? Published in 1978, it's a collection of 20 short stories by Barry Hannah that slowly became a classic of a then-new style of Southern literature. Hannah was from Mississippi. His writing was anarchic and wonderfully funny. He sounded like what you'd get if you stirred three heaping teaspoons of Thomas Pynchon and Terry Southern into a jar of Eudora Welty. I was 13 when "Airships" came out; it took me two decades to catch up with it. When I did, yikes, I was troubled by the rebarbative flecks of its racial content. "Airships" was the wrong book to hang a movement on. But let's hold that thought for a moment. Because in retrospect "Airships" was a small, misshapen and early part of an era that would come to mean a lot to me and to many other readers I know, an era that should not be left to pass without comment. This was a movement for which I'm tempted to use a shorthand drawn from three of its best writers: Harry, Barry and Larry. I am talking about Harry Crews (1935-2012), Barry Hannah (1942-2010) and Larry Brown (1951-2004). They were at the vanguard of a genre sometimes referred to as Grit Lit, or Rough South. |
| 'Star chamber': Joint motion seeks to seal Tim Herrington's capital murder case | |
| A joint effort to seal filings in the case against a former Ole Miss student accused of slaying Jimmie "Jay" Lee is very unusual, a legal expert told Mississippi Today. The petition states that due to "significant" media coverage, the only way Sheldon Timothy Herrington Jr.'s right to a fair trial will be secured is if the judge agrees to seal all pretrial documents, including docket entries, motions, exhibits, subpoenas and notices. It was first reported by the Oxford Eagle. Lafayette County District Attorney Ben Creekmore and Herrington's attorney, Rep. Kevin Horan, filed the motion together. It is unusual to see prosecutors partnering with the defense to seal cases, said Mississippi College School of Law professor Matthew Steffey, because they work on behalf of the public in lieu of more archaic forms of vigilante or community justice. Therefore, the public has a right to know what the district attorney is doing on its behalf. "It is not simply in our legal tradition to hold criminal trials in secret," said Matthew Steffey, a Mississippi College law professor. "You make it secret enough, then it's a 'star chamber,' albeit with jurors." Lee, a well-known member of Oxford's LGBTQ+ community, went missing on July 8, 2022. Herrington was arrested two weeks later. |
| Delta State University to Host Night of Champions Event, August 1 | |
| The Delta State University Department of Athletics announces, A Night of Champions, a special event featuring Mississippi football legend Archie Manning alongside Delta State Alumni and Athletics Hall of Famer, Langston Rogers. The inaugural event will take place August 1 at 6:00 p.m. at Walter Sillers Coliseum in Cleveland. Manning, a native of Drew, will headline the event, joining Langston Rogers, a long-time friend of Delta State, for a casual conversation. Manning's illustrious football career with Ole Miss earned him the honor of having his number 18 jersey retired, alongside his son Eli's number 10. Manning's achievements include holding several school records and earning the title of All-American. His professional career spanned 12 seasons with the New Orleans Saints, followed by stints with the Houston Oilers and Minnesota Vikings, where he solidified his legacy as an NFL MVP and inaugural Saints Hall of Fame inductee. Rogers, a native of Calhoun City, is celebrated for his contributions both on and off the field. As a former baseball player for Delta State under legendary coach Boo Ferriss, Rogers later served as the Sports Information Director (SID) for the university, covering the Lady Statesmen's AIAW National Championships in the mid-'70s. His remarkable career continued at Ole Miss Athletics. |
| Auburn University, Southern Union agree to construct hangar to combat aviation mechanic shortage | |
 | Auburn University and Southern Union State Community College agreed to construct a hangar to help solve the national aviation mechanic shortage, according to AU. The hangar will be used in AU's new Airframe and Powerplant School. A key component of the agreement is establishing a partnership with the School of Aviation in hopes of helping solve the industry's aviation mechanic shortage problem. "Our students and those from Southern Union will be able to use this new facility to learn skills that can propel them to long and successful careers in aviation. This agreement will help Auburn continue to produce exceptional graduates who can make an impact in the industry for generations to come," said James Witte, the director of the Auburn School of Aviation. The new facility will be constructed close to the Delta Air Lines Aviation Education Building and School of Aviation's maintenance hangar at Auburn University Regional Airport. The aviation industry is experiencing shortages in several sectors, including maintenance staff. The addition of the facility will help produce qualified aircraft maintenance personnel crucial to an industry still recovering from pandemic-related shortages. The industry will need to recruit, train and hire more than 600,000 new maintenance technicians during a 20-year period that ends in 2041, According to Boeing. |
| Ben Sasse Came to U. of Florida to Reshape Higher Ed. He Stepped Down Before He Got the Chance. | |
 | Ben Sasse's appointment as president of the University of Florida in late 2022 was hailed by his supporters as an opportunity to remake a flagship institution. Less than two years later, he is stepping down before having time to meaningfully influence the university's direction. Sasse announced his resignation late on Thursday with a social-media post on X (formerly Twitter) explaining that he needed to spend more time helping his wife, Melissa, deal with the ongoing effects of an aneurysm she suffered in 2007. "In recent months, Melissa has been diagnosed with epilepsy and has been struggling with a new batch of memory issues. It's been hard, but we've faced it together," Sasse wrote. The demands of caring for his wife and three children are now at odds with the demands of running a university, Sasse said, and he had to make a choice. Sasse's appointment was controversial largely because of his opposition to gay marriage and abortion --- stances he took as a Republican U.S. senator from Nebraska. Many faculty members were also upset that the process of picking a president was highly confidential, and Sasse was identified as a sole finalist for the position. That stemmed from a Republican-backed change in state law that allowed public colleges to keep the names of candidates secret until they were named as finalists. But some on campus also viewed Sasse, who has a Ph.D. in history from Yale University and was president of a small, private college in Nebraska, as a potential buffer from the far-right politics of Gov. Ron DeSantis, a frequent critic of higher education. DeSantis and his allies have sought to restrict how topics related to race, sexuality, and gender are taught in the state's classrooms and manufactured an ideological takeover of the state's public liberal-arts institution, New College of Florida. |
| A&M Performance, Visualization and Fine Arts dean has big plans for new college | |
 | Tim McLaughlin fondly remembers his time working on Jar Jar Binks for "Star Wars: Episode I" and also recognizes how it was his time at Texas A&M University that helped prepare him for his work as a digital designer. Thus, McLaughlin was honored to return to his alma mater and accept the role of dean for A&M's revitalized school of Performance, Visualization and Fine Arts, having served as interim dean since the school was established in September 2022. "The arts have been alive at A&M since its creation, they've just been in different places and different formats, not brought together under one roof and not fully invested in," he said. "The reason there are so many Aggies at places like Pixar and where I was ... is because here at A&M, in visualization, we took the arts and we merged that with an understanding of technology." McLaughlin earned his B.A. in Environmental Design from A&M in 1990 and later earned a master's in Visualization Sciences in 1994. His work led him to Industrial Light & Magic, creating digital creatures for well-known movies, including "Jumanji" in 1995, James Cameron's "Avatar" in 2009 and more. Having worked in visual arts, McLaughlin said he was humbled to be chosen as the first dean of the college, knowing he'll set a precedent for the future. "We are officially changing from a school to a college on Aug. 15, so less than a month," he said. "So the first thing we have to do is define what we're doing, make sure we're communicating it in a similar way, and then begin to let the rest of the world know." The soon-to-be school of Performance, Visualization and Fine Arts has new offerings for students in the fall. An undergraduate theatre degree was recently added as well as eight new minors including studio art, graphic design, game design & development and more. Similarly, more students have enrolled in the school and new staff have been hired. |
| Here are the steps North Carolina's public universities are taking to obey a new DEI ban | |
| North Carolina's 16 public universities and the North Carolina School of Science and Math have about six weeks to prove they are complying with a ban on diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Some have already taken action to follow the directive, including the shuttering of DEI offices. In May, the UNC Board of Governors repealed its policy that had previously mandated DEI offices and staff. It's been replaced with a new directive that enshrines "institutional neutrality" and directs campuses to avoid "political controversies of the day." Earlier this month, the UNC System's legal team sent guidance to universities expanding on this directive. The guidance directs chancellors to significantly rein in DEI jobs and offices on their campuses -- and fast. Campuses must submit a report to UNC President Peter Hans detailing how they're complying with the new policy by Sept. 1. WUNC asked the system for copies of these reports; no campuses have completed them yet. Lauren Barker, a university spokesperson, said NC State is reviewing the UNC System guidance and is "focused on providing programs and services that positively impact academic and professional performance, while maintaining our commitment to institutional neutrality." UNC-Chapel Hill has removed the "Meet the Team" page from its DEI website. The page previously listed all of the university's DEI staff, including a Chief Diversity Officer, program coordinators and student ambassadors. Nearly 20 positions were included. |
| U. of California regents ban political statements on university online homepages | |
| The University of California Board of Regents voted Thursday to ban employees from posting political statements on the homepages of university websites, saying such comments could be interpreted as the university system's official view. Political statements and personal opinions will be allowed on secondary pages and must include a disclaimer saying they don't represent UC's official views under the new policy. University employees can also post political opinions on their personal university webpages or social media accounts. Faculty members, students and members of the community have criticized the policy, saying it restricts free speech. The free speech movement started in the 1960s at the University of California, Berkeley before it spread to college campuses across the nation. Recently, political opinions have mainly been posted on the homepages of ethnic studies departments and carried pro-Palestinian messages. A message on the homepage of the UC Santa Barbara's Department of Feminist Studies that remained online Thursday expresses support for Palestinians and criticizes the University of California for its "numerous attacks on free speech." "The faculty in the Department of Feminist Studies are unflinching lovers of freedom and proud members of the collectives at UCSB fighting for Palestinian liberation and an end to the genocide in Gaza," the message says. Under the new policy, the homepage of websites for each campus department or academic unit should be only used to post events and news related to courses, faculty research and other academic information. |
| How the CrowdStrike global technology outage affected colleges | |
 | colleges and universities were and continue to be affected by massive technology outages caused by an update to CrowdStrike, a cybersecurity software, on Friday. Many U.S. institutions are currently on break, but some had to cancel summer classes Friday after the outage shut down Wi-Fi networks and Microsoft computers. Two institutions in Texas, Texas A&M University and the University of Houston at Victoria, canceled classes in the wake of the outage. Even so, Texas A&M's leaders wrote in a message to campus that the campus remained open and a new student event would go forward as planned. The university instructed IT resources to prioritize supporting that event through the outage. Late Friday afternoon, the university announced that 81 percent of its servers had been restored and classes would resume as normal today. Other universities reported that their Wi-Fi and devices had been impacted but chose not to cancel classes. The Rochester Institute of Technology, for one, shared on social media that it was without wireless internet on campus for much of the morning; it was restored at 11:50 a.m. Though CrowdStrike released a solution to the shutdowns within hours of the flawed update, the process is too complicated for many who aren't IT professionals, according to Dominic Sellitto, a professor of management science and systems at the University at Buffalo. There is no way to fix the problem en masse, meaning that on a campus with thousands of impacted devices across various classrooms, computer labs, offices and libraries, it could take the IT team many hours to resolve the problem on every computer. |
| Enrollment woes hit both private and public colleges in 2023, S&P reports | |
| Fiscal 2023 was a "tough year" for private nonprofit colleges amid a "long trend of weakening demand," S&P Global Ratings said in a Tuesday report. Median full-time equivalent enrollment at private nonprofits fell 0.8% year over year in fiscal 2023, while retention rates hit a five-year low of 82.4%, according to S&P's analysis. Given demand pressures and rising costs, institutions in the private nonprofit sector saw five times more credit downgrades than upgrades during the fiscal year. In a separate report on public colleges, S&P analysts said the recently ended fiscal year also tested the financial resilience of those institutions, with median full-time equivalent enrollment falling 0.7% for the sector. The combination of declining enrollment and rising expenses is eating away at the margins of many higher ed institutions across the U.S. Flagging demand has taken a toll on college operations and finances. "Deeper tuition discounting further strained net revenue growth as institutions competed for students," Megan Kearns, a credit analyst with S&P, said in a statement. S&P found the average tuition discount rate at private colleges -- which accounts for institutional aid provided to students that decreases the tuition paid by students -- rose by 0.7 percentage points to 44.8% in 2023. That is the highest rate in five years and 4.7 percentage points above 2019's average discount rate, per S&P's analysis. |
| The White-Collar Hiring Rut Is Here. That's Bad News for Young College Grads. | |
| The great white-collar job market chill is now targeting one group of applicants with particular force: college educated workers, especially new grads starting out in the job market. The white-collar labor market is entering a more uncertain phase after cooling for more than a year. Job insecurity is climbing and fewer professionals feel emboldened to change their employment. The lack of turnover is stalling hiring even more as companies rethink their talent needs after pandemic-hiring sprees. Hiring for roles that usually require a bachelor's degree has dropped below 2019 rates in recent months, new data from payroll provider ADP show. The drop has been steeper for 20-somethings, who are running into a bottleneck of entry-level openings as more established professionals stay put in the jobs they have, according to payroll information on more than 16 million people across 31,000 U.S. employers. By historic standards, the job market for college-educated workers remains relatively strong, and unemployment is still low. Yet it feels a long way from just two summers ago, when employers were competing so fiercely for software developers, marketers and other white-collar professionals that some were hiring and hoarding talent before having work for them to do. Cash-rich and confident that a pandemic-fueled boom would continue, corporate leaders worried more at the time about labor shortages. |
| Biden will leave a mixed legacy on higher ed policy | |
| President Biden will not seek re-election, he announced Sunday. The news capped weeks of debate about his ability to defeat former president Donald Trump, the Republican nominee, and spelled the imminent end of a White House tenure that has been filled with ambitious plans to forgive student loans and make higher education work better for students. "It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President," Biden wrote in a letter posted on social media. "And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term." Biden wrote that he'll speak to the nation later this week about his decision. The story of Biden's higher ed legacy is not yet finished. A number of changes are still in the works as he heads into the final six months of his presidency -- including a sweeping plan to forgive student loans for nearly 28 million Americans -- and legal challenges could block some of Biden's most significant initiatives. But the president and his administration have worked to roll back rules and regulations put in place during the Trump administration, overhauled student loan programs -- making it easier for millions of borrowers to access relief -- and stepped up scrutiny of programs that don't pay off for graduates. |
| Shad White, Michael Guest decry Democratic rhetoric against Trump. But what about fellow Republicans? | |
| Mississippi Today's Bobby Harrison writes: State Auditor Shad White and U.S. Rep. Michael Guest were among the Republican politicians who took to social media to blame Joe Biden and the Democratic Party for the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump. Reasonable people of all political persuasions agreed the assassination attempt, which resulted in the death of one Trump rally attendee, was tragic and antithetical to American values. But some went further. White, for instance, took to social media as he is wont to do and posted, "Biden just called on the nation to 'lower the temperature' in politics. That's rich. He should have apologized for calling President Trump a 'genuine threat to this nation,' 'literally a threat,' saying he 'could become the dictator that he promised to be on day one,' and on and on." Guest, a former district attorney for Madison and Rankin counties, included the media as part of the blame. "For months, President Biden and Democrats have been demonizing President Trump and claiming he was a threat to America. The events of yesterday should not have surprised anyone and the blame lays squarely at the feet of President Biden, progressive Democrats and the liberal media that have amplified these baseless allegations," the congressman proclaimed. Both are correct. Rightfully or wrongfully, there have been many harsh comments leveled at the former president over the threat he poses to America. But what White and Guest conveniently omitted from their recent diatribes is that countless of these such comments have been made by their fellow Republicans -- and people with firsthand experience with Trump's alarming behavior. |
SPORTS
| Borges Downs Nadal For First ATP 250 Title | |
| Mississippi State five-time All-American Nuno Borges claimed his first ATP 250 Tour Championship on Sunday by defeating tennis legend Rafael Nadal 6-3, 6-2 to win the Nordea Open. Sunday marked Borges' first finals appearance and is just the fourth person to defeat Nadal in an ATP clay court final joining Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray. The victory earned Borges €579,320 ($630,966.38 U.S.). "I never thought I would be here playing in a full stadium against 'Rafa' on clay," Borges said. "It is a dream come true. Right now, I'm living in the clouds." Borges is currently No. 51 in the world but will move to No. 42 when the new rankings are released on Sunday night, which will be a new career-high. He became just the second player from Portugal to ever secure an ATP title along with Joao Sousa. Sunday's victory marked the 17th professional tournament Borges has won and second this year. He also hoisted the championship trophy for the second-straight year at the 2024 Phoenix Open. Later this week, he will represent Portugal at the Summer Olympics in Paris. "Right now, I'll just enjoy the moment and thank everyone," Borges said. "I'm kind of speechless holding this trophy. Who would've thought? Tennis is crazy so why not keep going and keep dreaming." Borges lettered for the Bulldogs from 2016-19. |
| Mississippi State alum Nuno Borges defeats Rafael Nadal for first ATP Tour title | |
| Not even Rafael Nadal himself could stop Mississippi State alumnus Nuno Borges from securing his first ATP Tour title. On Sunday, the seventh-seeded Borges defeated Nadal 6-3, 6-2 in the Swedish Open final to find his first victory on the tour. It was Nadal's first final appearance since 2022 as the 22-time Grand Slam champion has wavered in recent years due to injury. Borges, born in Portugal before moving to the U.S. for college, was playing in his first final as a professional. After the match, the 22-year-old Borges said it was bittersweet to beat the 38-year-old Nadal. "It's crazy. In tennis, it doesn't happen when you expect it sometimes," Borges said, per the Associated Press. "I know we all wanted Rafa to win -- a part of me wished that too -- but something even bigger inside of me really pushed through today." Both Borges and Nadal will now turn their attention to the 2024 Olympics, which begin this Friday in Paris. Borges, who suited up for the Bulldogs from 2015-19, will begin his tenure as an expected mainstay for Team Portugal while Nadal may be playing in his fourth and final Olympic Games for Team Spain. |
| How Jeff Lebby sees Mississippi State football running back competition before preseason practice | |
| New Mississippi State football coach Jeff Lebby said he's still looking for a lead running back to assert himself from a group of contenders. The Bulldogs will use more than one back, Lebby indicated at SEC Media Days last week. But when asked about the most significant remaining questions for his roster with preseason practice looming, Lebby pointed toward the top of his running back depth chart. Mississippi State's top three rushers from a season ago have either moved on or will be unavailable in 2024. Jo'quavious Marks transferred to USC. Mike Wright ‒ a quarterback ‒ will play for Northwestern. And Seth Davis, who averaged six yards per carry in a promising freshman season, "won't be back" in 2024 after suffering a knee injury in last year's Egg Bowl, Lebby said. "You got a guy like Keyvone (Lee) that, again, had a good spring," Lebby said. "Johnnie Daniels was banged up, then had a good spring game and was good late in the spring. (Jeffery Pittman) obviously coming back as well, and then adding Davon (Booth) was a huge piece of it." Among the returners, Pittman produced the strongest 2023 campaign, rushing 54 times for 268 yards and a touchdown. Lee appeared in eight games after transferring from Penn State, accumulating 75 yards and 12 attempts. |
| 'One of my favorite people on this planet': Lebby's former bosses offer praise for Bulldogs' new head coach | |
| In each of his last three stops before being named Mississippi State's head coach, Jeff Lebby worked for a current head coach in the Southeastern Conference. At Central Florida in 2018 and 2019, Lebby was the Knights' quarterbacks coach and later offensive coordinator under Josh Heupel, who left UCF to become the head coach at Tennessee in 2021. Lebby then moved on to Ole Miss, working as Lane Kiffin's offensive coordinator for two years, then spent 2022 and 2023 as the offensive coordinator at Oklahoma under Brent Venables. "Jeff is one of my favorite people on this planet," Venables said this week at SEC Media Days. "He's always in a great mood, his perspective on life and the game of football and on the locker room, real juice and energy, genuineness and positivity. He's a coach's kid. So the game and the locker room have always been a sanctuary for him, which helps him be a very successful coach." Unlike Heupel and Kiffin, Venables has a defensive background, so by the time Lebby arrived at his alma mater, he was ready to take full control of the offense. Quarterback Dillon Gabriel, who put up outstanding numbers as a true freshman under Lebby and Heupel at UCF, transferred to Oklahoma and had two more excellent seasons as the Sooners' starter, but Oklahoma also had a five-star freshman waiting in the wings last year in Jackson Arnold. "I love Coach Lebby. Obviously he was the OC I committed to and the coach I played for last year, besides the bowl game," Arnold said. "I wish the best for him at Mississippi State. He's going to do great. He's a great coach, and on top of that he's a great person too. I'm sure the coaches love working for him." |
| 432-pound bull shark caps opening day at 2024 Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo | |
 | A stormy Friday morning made for a slow start to the 91st Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo, but the big fish started to come in by day's end -- including a bull shark that wasn't far shy of the state record. Traffic at the docks might have been light through midafternoon, but there were enough fish coming in by land and by sea that rodeo staff in the weigh station never had to wait long for the next angler to arrive. From there, a lot of fish went to a corps of researchers from the University of South Alabama and the Dauphin Island Sea Lab. Shark expert Marcus Drymon, a professor at Mississippi State University, was on the dock ready to greet any sharks brought in. One of the biggest happenings at the 2023 rodeo was the arrival of a tiger shark that weighed in at over 1,000 pounds, setting a new state record. Drymon said that while there was some social-media criticism around the animal's death, it was a scientific bonanza. "It's all about perspective," he said. "There's a tremendous amount we learn." That particular shark had turned out to be a pregnant female carrying 42 pups, each about 18 inches long, he said. |
| What Southern Miss AD Jeremy McClain said about paying players, Will Hall, basketball renovations | |
| 2024 is halfway over and shifts have already been made in the college athletics landscape that will affect Southern Miss. Revenue sharing to pay college athletes has been agreed to but not finalized. Schools can also become more involved in NIL than before. The Golden Eagles are close to a pivotal football season while completing facility projects and beginning new ones. In an interview with the Hattiesburg American, Southern Miss athletics director Jeremy McClain spoke on the department's approach to revenue sharing, expectations for the football season and the latest renovation updates for Reed Green Coliseum and the Giddis Golf Center. Southern Miss athletics operated at a $34,426 surplus in the 2023 fiscal year with record highs in revenue ($30.4 million) and expenses ($30.3 million). In 2022, Southern Miss' $28.4 million in revenue was 13th out of 14 in the Sun Belt, according to USA TODAY's database. The full 2023 database has yet to be published, but the 2023 revenue would've still been second to last in the Sun Belt in 2022 only behind Louisiana-Monroe. Details on schools paying athletes through revenue sharing are unclear. McClain didn't provide specifics on Southern Miss' approach but said it's important to be "conscious of what's coming our way." "I think it's too early," he said, "and so in my mind it's more of just kind of the mindset of let's make sure we're doing everything we can to maximize fundraising, to put ourselves in the right position financially to prepare to make some adjustments in scholarships if that's what comes through." |
| The new College Football Playoff is here, and it has the whole SEC gunning for a spot | |
 | It could be a challenging season for Arkansas coach Sam Pittman, who sat down at SEC media days on Thursday and acknowledged the seat underneath him felt a tad warmer than it usually does. Three years ago, the Razorbacks went 9-4. But college football has since experienced a tectonic shift, reflected in a slew of changes that arrived in the sport across the two subsequent seasons, a period in which Arkansas saw its fortunes flip. Last season, it went 4-8. And this year, Arkansas likely will need to pull off a few upsets to post just a .500 record. But it's also never had more paths to a national title, thanks to the newly expanded 12-team College Football Playoff, which Pittman is eyeing as he works to improve his team's prospects. "I think it gives you life," he said. Under the new format, the CFP selection committee will award five spots to teams that win their conference and fill the remaining slots with its next seven highest ranked teams. The new bracket has four rounds. For the first time ever, the first-round games will be played on college campuses. The field may one day expand again. CFP executive director Rich Clark said Wednesday at SEC media days that the committee could soon discuss the possibility of adding two more spots, but only after it perfects the existing 12-team model. For now, playoff representatives already are meeting with FBS schools to coordinate the logistics of hosting playoff games, Clark said. And the SEC will begin to collect data on the health and safety effects of the games the playoff will add to some teams' schedules, according to its chief medical officer Catherine O'Neal. |
| College sports, realignment and the origin of the grant of rights | |
| The most-discussed document in college sports is stored away in an office in Charlotte, North Carolina, far from the prying eyes of the public or, as it turns out, the school administrators who actually signed it. The ACC's grant of rights, which is now under dispute in three different jurisdictions, is -- along with its companion agreement, the league's multimedia rights deal -- kept top secret. Or it was until Florida State filed a lawsuit hoping to escape from under the contract's weight. A North Carolina judge likened the league's grant of rights and multimedia deal to Coke's secret formula -- everyone's heard of it, no one knows what's actually in it. And yet, the ACC is hardly alone in its covert handling of key documents. The Big 12's grant of rights was reviewed by teams of high-priced lawyers as Texas and Oklahoma looked to depart for the SEC three years ago, and yet the document itself never saw the light of day publicly. Why the big secret? "That's a really good question," one ACC administrator said. "I don't know that answer," an ACC athletic director said. "I guess because people are hopeful there's a way around it." "Everybody knows it's out there," another official said before acknowledging the secretive nature of its specific language. "It's like smoke coming from the Vatican." The inscrutability has given the document an almost mythical status, but in shrouding the grant of rights in mystery, it has become a sort of Rorschach test for fans and media hoping to predict the next round of realignment in college sports. |
| On road to revenue-sharing model, Houston Christian question looms | |
| With the long-form House v. NCAA settlement expected to be submitted this week to U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken, one conspicuous speed bump (among several) looms on the road toward the judge certifying this historic agreement in the coming months. It remains to be seen how Wilken weighs Houston Christian's motion to intervene in the case, filed on June 20 and representing the first formal objection to the settlement terms. HCU, a member of the Southland Conference, contends its interests were not represented in settlement talks. "If HCU is successful here and is able to intervene in the case, I expect we'll see other non-P4 schools do the same," Mit Winter, a sports attorney for Kennyhertz Perry, told On3. "That could really put the proposed House settlement on shaky ground." Legal experts caution that certification is not a foregone conclusion. Athletes will have 90 days to opt out of the settlement. And Wilken could balk at some elements in the agreement, which could send both sides back to the negotiating table. If certified by Wilken -- potentially by early next year -- the settlement entails the NCAA and all 32 Division I conferences paying $2.8 billion in damages over 10 years, and schools, at their discretion, being permitted to share as much as $22 million annually with athletes. |
| NIL Has Made Golfers De Facto Pros Before They Leave College | |
| In professional golf, top players earn millions of dollars through contracts with companies that supply their clubs and clothes. Up until 2021, those sponsorship dollars would start hitting a golfer's bank account only after they gave up their amateur status. But since the emergence of relaxed name, image, and likeness policies in college sports, that process has sped up. Instead of recruiting top amateurs after they've proved themselves playing for a major university, brands now have the option of betting on young talent before they become household names. There are pros and cons to that strategy, though. "It's hard enough, when they're professionals, to really measure the ROI on some of these agreements," says Jeff Lienhart, the president of Adidas Golf, which heading into last week's Scottish Open sponsored three of the top 10 ranked men's golfers in the world. "We believe in the system and we believe in having these partnerships with professional athletes. NIL is even that much more difficult to measure an ROI." Still, visibility is key for brands looking to sell shirts, shoes, pants, and more. So, striking an early relationship with a player who might one day be in the final group of a major, like this week's Open Championship, is worth the investment. "It gives you a seat at the table, so that when they turn professional, you're in a good position to negotiate what the future might hold," Lienhart tells Front Office Sports, white noting sales often spike after an Adidas player wins or has a strong Sunday finish. |
The Office of Public Affairs provides the Daily News Digest as a general information resource for Mississippi State University stakeholders.
Web links are subject to change. Submit news, questions or comments to Jim Laird.
